Orange County libraries launched a new bilingual campaign “¡Oh Sí!” to encourage families to spend more time at a library this summer. Hetty Chang reports for the NBC4 News on June 6, 2024.
Orange County libraries launched a bilingual campaign that offers children free lunches, activities, tutoring services and more for the summer.
The initiative is called “¡Oh sÍ!" which is “Oh, yes” in Spanish. The campaign aims to show families that an array of services are offered at Orange County libraries that go beyond just books.
It coincides with the Lunch at the Library program, which offers free lunch to anyone 18 years or younger through the summer.
“I grabbed carrots and apples,” said 9-year-old Mila Coleman, who plans on spending a lot of her summer days at the Tustin library
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“You can come over here and grab food and just go read a book and check it out for two or three weeks,” said Coleman.
Several Orange County libraries, including Tustin, are offering free lunch. The hope is to encourage kids and their families to spend more time at the library, especially Spanish-speaking families.
“With summer break, this is how I keep them busy,” said Alma Cardenas, a mother of four children.
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“My parents brought me here to do homework,” said Cardenas. “Once I started having my kids, my parents told me about story time, so I started bringing them here.”
In these spaces, children can read, learn and eat in a safe environment. It also helps families who may struggle to make ends meet.
“There’s a lot of families that struggle with food insecurity,” said Danilo Serranilla, the marketing and communications manager for OC Libraries.
“It’s important because Tustin is very diverse. There’s high end and moderate end,” said Shana Coleman, a mother of five. “Not just the resources available. It’s necessary for other families see, too. We need these kinds of programs.”
Lunch at the library is available at:
- Costa Mesa Donald Dungan Library. Located at 1855 Park Ave., Costa Mesa, CA 92627
- El Toro Library. Located at 24672 Raymond Way, Lake Forest, CA 92630
- Garden Grove Chapman Library. Located at 9182 Chapman Ave., Garden Grove, CA 92841
- Garden Grove Main Library. Located at 11200 Stanford Ave., Garden Grove, CA 92840
- San Juan Capistrano Library. Located at 31495 El Camino Real, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
- Tustin Library. Located at 345 E. Main St., Tustin, CA 92780
